PEANUTS: The Next ChapterEpisode 22: The Play-Sparkyville Idol
by HPDrummerman
Summary: As part of a new story arc called "The Play", auditions begin for the Birchwood School Christmas show. Schroeder enlists his friends to help find talent. Charlie Brown calls on both Frieda and his celebrity cousin, Trevor B., as singers for the show. And a certain beagle and yellow bird auditions with a dance act they put together. (Special guest Claudia by LivingOnLaughs)
1. Chapter 1

Episode 22: The Play-Sparkyville Idol

 **CHAPTER 1: AN OPPORTUNITY FOR SCHROEDER**

At Birchwood Elementary School, Schroeder was running with excitement. He had never been so happy since he took a trip to Germany to see Beethoven's boyhood home. At that time, Lucy was putting some books away in her locker, when her boyfriend swept her off her feet and kissed her passionately.

"Whoa, what gives, baby?" she asked. "While I love the attention you're giving me, you never act like this at your most romantic."

"Lucy, I have some great news!" said Schroeder with a big smile. "The principal has selected me to direct the Christmas show that's happening in December after Thanksgiving."

"Wow, that's great, sweetie!" said Lucy. "I'm so proud of you. It's about time this school recognized your talent."

"Well, about that. As much as I would love to perform in it, I am not the one performing. I have to enlist a bunch of talent for the show. Singers, dancers, other musicians besides myself, crew to work behind the scenes."

"Well if you need any help, Schroeder, you know your Lucy will help in finding some talent."

"Well, I've already enlisted Charlie Brown to do that, but you can help me with the auditions and voting for which talent goes in and who doesn't."

"That'll work, too. As long as I can work beside you, honey."

"Absolutely. I may even need a co-director."

"I'll take it!"

"I knew you would."

Elsewhere, Charlie Brown and Frieda were talking about the upcoming show in December, as well. He was asking if she would like to perform in the show.

"I would love to, sweetie," she replied. "Anything to help out our friends."

"I am glad you are, Frieda," said Charlie Brown. "Just know that Schroeder can be a bit, uh…"

"High strung?" Frieda finished. "Well, we all know that already, but I'm used to him going crazy every once in a while."

"Point taken. Even though he knows you can sing, you may still need to audition."

"I'm prepared for that, hun. Hey! I just had an idea."

"What's that?"

"Why don't you check with Schroeder if you can get your cousin, Trevor B. to be a surprise act? While you'd still have to check with your cousin if he was available for that, I'm sure Schroeder wouldn't mind."

"That's not a bad idea, Frieda. I'll run it by Schroeder first, then I'll call up Trevor and find out if he's available for that date. What would I do without a wonderful girlfriend like you?"

"Luckily, you'll never have to find out, baby," said Frieda, who then kissed her boyfriend. Then the two of them went into class and met up with Linus.

"Hey guys," Linus greeted. "So, how's the talent search going, Charlie Brown?"

"Well, Frieda here is on board," Charlie Brown replied. "She also suggested having Trevor as a special guest for the show. I'll have to check with Schroeder about doing that first, then run it by Trevor."

"It looks like we're going to have one heck of a show," said Linus.

"You said it, Linus," agreed Charlie Brown. And then it was time for class to begin.

 **NEXT CHAPTER: "WHAT YOUR LIFE CAN TRULY BE…"**


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2: THE AUDITIONS BEGIN**

In the school auditorium, the auditions for the Christmas show were well under way. Serving as judges were Schroeder himself, Lucy, and Harold Angel, Sally's friend. All of the performers, including Frieda, were waiting for their auditions. Charlie Brown was backstage with a clipboard. His job was to call out the next person or persons to audition. Besides Frieda, among the kids auditioning was a magician, a rock band performing Christmas music with a rock style, Violet and Shermy doing a dance number (praying that it won't be as disastrous as last time-*see _It's New Love, Charlie Brown_ -hpdm), amongst others. Unbeknownst to Charlie Brown, Snoopy and Woodstock had snuck in to the school after hearing about the auditions. They kept out of sight until the opportunity arose for them.

"All right, everyone," Schroeder announced from the front of the stage where he and the other judges were sitting. "The auditions will now begin. Charlie Brown will call the first person or persons to audition." And the auditions were underway.

 _When you wish upon a star_

 _Your dreams will take you very far_

 _But when you wish upon a dream_

 _Life ain't always what it seems_

 _What'd you see on a night so clear_

 _In the sky so very dear_

 _You're a shining star_

 _No matter who you are_

 _Shining bright to see_

 _What you could truly be (what you could truly be)_

 _Shining star come in to view_

 _Shine its watchful light on you_

 _Give you strength to carry on_

 _Make your body big and strong_

 _Born a man child of the sun_

 _Saw my work had just begun_

 _Found I had to stand alone_

 _Bless it now I've got my own_

 _So, if you find yourself in need_

 _Why don't you listen to these words of heed_

 _Be a giant grain of sand_

 _Words of wisdom, yes I can_

 _You're a shining star_

 _No matter who you are_

 _Shining bright to see_

 _What you could truly be_

 _You're a shining star_

 _No matter who you are_

 _Shining bright to see_

 _What you could truly be_

 _You're a shining star_

 _No matter who you are_

 _Shining bright to see_

 _What you could truly be_

 _Shining star for you to see_

 _What your life can truly be_

 _Shining star for you to see_

 _What your life can truly be_

 _Shining star for you to see_

 _What your life can truly be_

After all was done, Schroeder was able to get at least five acts (including Frieda, of course) into the show. But then, to the surprise of everyone, Snoopy and Woodstock bombarded the stage and went into a dance number they came up with.

"Charlie Brown!" Lucy yelled from the front of the stage up to where he was. "Did you know your stupid dog and his friend were doing this?!"

"Absolutely not, Lucy!" Charlie Brown yelled back. "I'm as surprised as all of you! I didn't even tell him about the show!"

"I don't doubt that you had nothing to do with this, Charlie Brown," Schroeder yelled, "but there's NO WAY I'm letting this beagle ruin MY program! SECURITY!"

And before they knew it, Snoopy and Woodstock were tossed out of the school auditorium. "That's no way to treat a star," Snoopy thought. Woodstock chirped at Snoopy.

"What do you mean that YOU'RE the star?!" the beagle retorted. And the two of them argued all the way back home.

Back in the auditorium, Schroeder said to the kids who made it in, "Congratulations to those who made it into the show. Tomorrow, rehearsals will begin. The practice rooms will be made available for you to practice your act in. To all of the crew members, we will discuss how the show will work out and who will be in charge of props. Okay, everyone is dismissed."

 **NEXT CHAPTER: A NEW FRIEND**

" **Shining Star"** written by Maurice White, Larry Dunn, and Philip Bailey

© Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3: ENTER CLAUDIA**

One Saturday at Joe's Café, Charlie Brown and Frieda were eating lunch when Peppermint Patty, Franco, Marcie, and Hans walked in. They had an auburn-haired girl with them who, like Marcie, wore glasses. The group headed over to where Charlie Brown and Frieda were.

"Hey, you two," greeted Patty.

"Hey guys," said Charlie Brown. "What's going on?"

"Not much," said Franco. "Enjoying the weekend."

"Yah, just got back from museum," added Hans.

"We took our new friend here with us," said Marcie.

"We were going to ask who she is," said Frieda.

"This is Claudia Grandin," announced Peppermint Patty. "She goes to our school now. Claudia, this is our friends, Chuck Brown, and Frieda Rich. They go to Birchwood, but we are good friends with them. Chuck also has a baseball team like me, and we play them often."

"Nice to meet you, Claudia," said Charlie Brown, who offer his hand to shake, but Claudia backed away.

"Huh?" said a confused Charlie Brown.

"Oh we should have told you, Chuck," Patty started. "Claudia's autistic. It takes a while for her to warm up to new people. She is a nice girl, but she's a bit shy. Just give her some time and she will eventually be more open with you."

"Oh, okay then," said Charlie Brown. "I didn't mean to startle her."

"It's all right, Charles," said Marcie. "She has Asperger's. She doesn't like talking about it much, so don't ask any questions about it to her."

"All right then," said Frieda.

"So what have you been up to this week?" asked Patty.

"Well, we've been helping Schroeder getting ready for a Christmas program that he's in charge of directing," said Charlie Brown.

"I've already been chosen to sing there," added Frieda.

"And I'm going to see if Trevor will make his presence known as a special guest," Charlie Brown continued. "Schroeder said it was alright. He's already got a few performers for the show, but Trevor would be the surprise guest."

"Sounds like it's shaping up to be a great show," said Patty.

"If y-y-your friend likes," Claudia spoke up, "I could do some p-posters for him."

"Really?" said Frieda.

"Sure," said Claudia with a smile. "I love d-doing pictures and artwork and things with pretty colors."

"Claude here is quite the artist, kids," said Patty. "You should see the stuff she's done."

"We'd like to see your artwork, Claudia," said Charlie Brown. "If you want to show it, that is."

"Sure, I can sh-sh-show you," said Claudia. She was already warming up to Charlie Brown and Frieda. "I've have plenty of artwork at h-home."

"All right, I'll talk to Schroeder about you doing some posters for the show," suggested Charlie Brown.

"Okay, thank you," said a happy Claudia, who then hugged Charlie Brown tightly, causing him to gag a bit.

"Personal space, Claudia," reminded Marcie.

"Oops, s-sorry," said Claudia, letting go of the blockhead.

"No problem," coughed Charlie Brown. "A strong one, she is!" And everyone laughed.

Later that day, Charlie Brown dialed a number on his phone. Sally walked in and asked, "Who are you calling, big brother?"

"Getting a hold of Trevor, Sally," Charlie Brown answered. "Trying to see if he can perform at the Christmas show."

"I see," said Sally. "Well let's just hope he's not busy on tour or anything."

Charlie Brown waited for him to answer. Instead, it went to voicemail. Charlie Brown left his message. "Hey, Trevor, it's Charlie. Can you give me a call when you can? I have a favor to ask of you. Thanks, I'll talk to you later. Bye."

 **NEXT CHAPTER: FIRST DAY OF REHEARSALS**


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4: DANCERS, SINGERS, AND PARTY-CRASHING BEAGLES**

Rehearsals for the show began the following Monday after school. Charlie Brown was backstage as manager of talent. Pig Pen and Linus were part of the stage crew. Lucy assisted the director, which was Schroeder, who was in charge. The acts included Frieda singing, Sally doing a recital, Violet and Shermy doing a dance number, Patty and Ox reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas", and other kids were perfecting their acts, as well. Schroeder wanted the show to go smoothly. And he was sure it would be, as long as a certain beagle and bird stayed far away from the auditorium.

Schroeder and Charlie Brown were chatting about Trevor joining up with the show. Charlie Brown said, "He finally called me back yesterday. He said while he couldn't totally commit to it with his busy schedule, he'd try to make it. He promised that he would let us know closer to the show, but not the day of."

"I guess that's all I ask," Schroeder sighed. "Anything else?"

"Oh yeah," Charlie Brown remembered. "There's this girl named Claudia that's a new friend of Patty and Marcie's. She offered to make flyers for the show. These are some examples of her work." And he handed Schroeder some artwork that Claudia did.

"These are pretty good, Charlie Brown," said Schroeder with a smile. "Okay, tell her she can do the flyers for us."

"Great," said Charlie Brown. Just then, the boys heard some commotion from the stage.

"Is he for real?!" shouted one kid.

"He's already been kicked out once; what makes him think he can get into the show now?!" said another. Frieda ran up to Charlie Brown and Schroeder.

"Guys," she began, "you may want to deal with this." And they all went to the stage to see what the fuss was about. What they saw was Snoopy dressed as Carmen Miranda, complete with wrap filled with fruit and makeup, and doing a cha-cha across the stage.

"Okay, my dog has finally flipped!" groaned Charlie Brown. Frieda just snickered at the scene. The other kids were wondering what this dog was doing. But Schroeder was fuming and had no patience for the beagle's shenanigans.

"SECURITY!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. And before he knew it, Snoopy was out of the auditorium again.

"Why can't I have a normal dog like everyone else?" sighed Charlie Brown.

"You're guess is as good as mine, Charlie Brown," said Schroeder. "Hopefully he won't interrupt anymore of the rehearsals."

"At least not today," added Frieda. And the kids went back to work.

A little while later at Claudia's house, she was working on her posters for the show at Birchwood. Krissy, her older teenaged sister, knocked on her door.

"What are you working on now, Claudia?" she asked.

"P-Posters for a Christmas show at a school of some new friends I've made over the weekend," Claudia responded.

"They don't even go to your school?" Krissy enquired.

"No, but they are f-friends of Peppermint Patty and Marcie," said Claudia. "I offered to help with their play by making posters and flyers for them."

"Are you sure you can take a big task like that, Claud?"

"Sure, I c-c-can, Krissy! I can do this."

"Okay, just looking out for you, little sis." And Krissy went into the family room. Claudia continued to work on her posters for the show. She was happy to have made some new friends and was determined to make a good impression on them.

 **THE END**

 _NOTE:_ The characters, Claudia and Krissy Grandin are OC's created by and properties of LivingOnLaughs and were used with permission.


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